General

How can I get a free trial of Stereo Tool?

Just download the software from our website. The stand-alone version contains all features, but plays a beep or spoken message in the processed sound every once in a while (depending on which features are in use). There is no time limit on the trial version.

My station has music format […] , is Stereo Tool suitable for processing my sound?

Yes! There are many settings in Stereo Tool that can be used to tune its behaviour to match your desired sound, whether your stations plays pop, rock, jazz, classical or any other genre.

Why is Stereo Tool partially free?

Stereo Tool started as a hobby project, many years ago, and at the time it was free. We don't want people to keep using old versions of our software, so all the features that once were free are still free today.

Why is Stereo Tool so cheap? What's the catch?

There is no catch! We love what we do, and we want to have as many users as possible. So we prefer selling a lot of licenses for a low price over selling a few licenses for a high price.

FM

How can I generate FM MPX with stereo and RDS with my pc?

You need a sound card that supports sample rates up to 192kHz. If this is the case, you can output a full MPX signal with stereo and RDS, which can be fed directly to your transmitter.

Can I use any 192kHz enabled sound card to generate FM MPX?

Basically, yes. However, the flatter the frequency response of the sound card, the better. If the sound card contains a high pass filter, the lowest frequencies are removed which may cause overshoots in the output signal. If the sound card contains a lowpass filter, high frequencies are attenuated, which may result in less stereo separation.

Which sound cards do you recommend for outputting FM MPX?

Marian, AudioScience, Juli@, Behringer, Realtek

Streaming

What type of sound card do I need when I’m only (web-)streaming?

None! Well, that depends. If you only stream a playlist and don't need any external audio, you don't need a sound card at all. A sound card can still be useful for monitoring purposes, but that doesn't affect what your listeners hear.
If you do need external audio, for example microphone audio, basically any sound card will work. Keep in mind that more professional cards may give a cleaner signal with less noise and other artefacts.

Working with other software

Can I integrate Stereo Tool directly into my radio automation system?

Yes, as long as your automation system supports VST or DSP plugins, or our own plugin format that gives the automation software full control over anthing that happens in Stereo Tool. Systems that support these plugins are e.g. SAM Broadcaster, Station Playlist, ProppFrexx, mAirlist, GML and many others. Check with your automation system vendor whether you need the 32-bit or the 64-bit plugin version.
If your playout software does not use plugins, there is an alternative: Use a program like Virtual Audio Cable (VAC) or VB Cable to send the audio to.

Licenses

Can I use my license on multiple machines?

It depends! Some radio stations have a split setup, where e.g. multiband compression, stereo enhancement, bass boost et cetera take place at the studio, whereas the final clipping and MPX generation is done at the studio. In this scenario it is fine to use one license for both locations. However when multiple machines are processing a different signal (e.g., another station or another stream), you need a separate license for that.

Can I use my license multiple times on the same machine?

The same applies as for using a license on multiple machines. When you are processing separate signals you need separate licenses.

I need multiple licenses, can I get a discount?

In the Dutch language there is a saying that goes something like: “A no you have, a yes you can get”. Which basically means: sure, just drop us an email at mail@thimeo.com and we’ll get back to you.

How long is a license valid? Do I need to pay for updates?

A license is valid for life, and updates of the features that you bought are free. So, for example an FM license that was given out in 2008 is still valid today, but it only unlocks the FM features, not the new things that were added since, such as the Declipper, Composite Clipper, Auto EQ and Delossifier. But you can still use a license from 2008 in the latest version of Stereo Tool, and benefit from all the improvements and additions that are covered by it.

SDK

We are a manufacturer of software. Can we run Stereo Tool as a plugin in our software?

Yes! There are multiple ways of doing this, depending on what you want or need exactly.
If you want to support many different plugins, it might be easiest to support the VST (currently 2.4) or DSP plugin of Stereo Tool.
If you want full control and maximum flexibility, we have our own plugin format and SDK which is already supported by several software vendors and other larger media groups who have built their own streaming platform. Integrating it in your software should typically take only a few hours, we have example code available - for minimal integration you only need to call 3 functions (initialize, process audio, terminate). But our SDK makes it possible to access all the settings and meters from Stereo Tool from your own software if needed, load and save presets, you can even let the plugin handle all the sound card I/O so your software is just a wrapper around it. Contact us for details and pricing.